Cupping an Assam and an Uva

An Uva and an Assam mark the last in-class tastings for my ITEI tea course. The next time I formally prepare teas for the course will be during my blind test! Both Uva and Assam are black teas; the former from Sri Lanka and the latter from India. Assam is made from the large leaves of Camellia sinensis var. assamica which was discovered in the region. (Puer is also made from C. s. var. assamica but from the Da Ye cultivar.) Uva is one of the three "major quality growing areas in Sri Lanka" (Gascoyne et al., 2014). Gardens in this province produce either mid-grown or high-grown tea depending on their location on the slope. In this way, Sri Lankans are like the Taiwanese in distinguishing their teas by elevation.

Both the Uva and the Assam I drank were orthodox teas. The Uva was uniform in leaf size and color without any detectable fluff or stems. I did not observe any buds so I would think this tea's grade is OP for orange pekoe. The Assam leaves were broken and not of a uniform size. Buds were present but not in a high amount. I was asked to assign a grade to this tea and I offered BFOP for broken flowery orange pekoe.

I dominant smell, taste, and aroma of the Assam was sweet. The dry leaf smelled malty and sweet. The specific forms of sweetness one should detect in an Assam are honey, spicy, and blond tobacco. In the liquor I detected a spicy/vanilla tail note and the infused leaves smelled like chocolate in addition to malt. But I did not discern blond tobacco. The Assam was a fairly complex tea. The liquor look full bodied and that was reflected in the taste. The liquor was malty, brisk, acidic (not like a lemon), fruity sweet, woody, and the aforementioned vanilla spicy. I infused 2 grams in boiling water for 3 minutes using a professional tasting cup.

I used the same steeping parameter for this Uva. This tea was more elegant in appearance than the Assam and the liquor looked like it would taste flavorful. The liquor was not as sweet as it looked or smelled. The fragrance of the dry leaves was fruity sweet as well as smelling quite similar to a horse barn which is not the same as other types of barns. The liquor was not full-bodied and the flavors dissipated quickly. The dominant flavor of this tea was herbaceous. I detected a spicy tail note, though, once the liquor cooled. This is not a black tea for milk. I would recommend milk and sugar for the Assam but it's quite fine served plain. Do you drink you black tea with milk?

P.S. I was asked to describe my experience with the Uva today and I described it this way: the dry and infused leaves and the liquor look like a black tea. However, if I had tasted this tea sight unseen I would have guessed it was a green tea because of the herbaceous quality. What kind of green tea? I don't know yet. I'll have to drink more of this tea.
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Assam Banaspaty - Indian Black Tea Cupping

Assam is one of the two most well-known Indian tea producing regions. The other is Darjeeling. Read my Darjeeling First Flush cupping notes. Today I share my impressions of Assam Banaspaty. Assam teas are produced from the large leaves of Camellia sinsensis var. assamica. When steeped, Assam teas generally produce a malty and astringent dark reddish liquor. Read on for specifics on mouthfeel, taste, and smell of the Assam Banaspaty I tasted.

The original source of the tea listed it as broken orange pekoe (BOP). Orange pekoe refers to the plucking style of a bud and two leaves. However, I noted a very low presence of buds in the dry tea. The leaves, mostly black but with showing red and golden colors, too, were mixed in length and inconsistently cut. The leaves smelled like a cigarette before it is lit. I also detected malt and dark fruit.

I used the standard cupping protocol of 2 grams of leaves steeped for 3 minutes. The water temperature was 212F. I prepared one infusion with my instructor and steeped the leaves twice more on my own. The color of the infusion was mahogany. The liquor smelled like briskness. It was also woody tasting with notes of dark, dried fruit. The end note was astringent. The scent from the infused leaves were consistent with the dry leaf and the liquor; they smelled malty and like tobacco. Overall the tea was round with little to no sharpness. It tasted of just right malty; no milk should be added to this tea.

Darjeeling First Flush - Indian Black Tea Cupping

The history of tea in India is a dark one; here I'm referring not to the color of the tea but to human behavior: espionage, indentured servitude, ethnic and religious strife, deforestation, and probably a lot more. I knew parts of the story but I'm filling in the gaps through the tea course I am taking with International Tea Education Institute. In addition to this very important aspect of tea in India, I am learning about the major regions in India, the prominence of either variety of C. sinensis depending on where you are in India, processing methods, and harvest periods. Earlier this week I cupped a first flush Darjeeling. As I mentioned on Instagram I mistakenly used 3 grams of leaf in my cupping set. The standard measure is 2 grams of leaf (steeped for 3 minutes). I corrected the situation; I measured out 2 grams for my second cupping set. Another error on my part was using 195F water; this tea called for 203F. With my instructor I completed one infusion. On my own I infused the leaves two times more. Here I share the notes from the first infusion.

The dry leaf smelled like the stems of herbs, fruity, sweet and even of brioche. The tea was a mix of buds and light and dark brown leaves. The leaf was processed in the orthodox style but the grade was broken orange pekoe. The infused leaves carried the smell of baked goods. Additional aromas were of raisins and almond skin. Floral notes emerged from the cooled leaves.

The 3 gram infusion was a red copper color which contrasted with the amber liquid from the 2 gram infusion. The level of astringency was also different between the two cups. The 3 gram liquor was noticeable more astringent but it was not unpleasant. Both gram weights yielded a flowery flavor almost like a perfume. Fruit notes emerged more forcefully as the liquors cooled.

The 2 gram liquor did not exhibit an aftertaste. Woody and malty notes lingered from the 3 gram infusion. This leaf weight yielded a more full bolded tea. After the teas had cooled off significantly, I noted that the 2 gram tea could be drunk on its own or served with light foods. On the other hand, the 3 gram tea would be better served with (richer) food. My takeaway from this cupping is not a surprising one: a tea can be lighter or bolder in flavor depending on the gram weight.

Cupping Smith Teamaker's 1st Flush Darjeeling Tumsong

Technically one uses a cupping set for a comparative tasting but I the Tumsong was the only first flush Darjeeling I have in my tea stash. I do have a second flush Darjeeling, also from Smith Teamaker, the No. 17 Steinthal. The protocol I used is the one outlined in Tea: History, Terroirs, and Varieties, the textbook for my tea studies with ITEI, which I describe below.

1. Weigh the tea and add it to the infusion cup. I measured 3 grams of loose tea.
2. Pour hot water on the leaves and cover the cup. I used 200F water since the Darjeeling is a first flush and this greener.
3. Infuse the leaves for three minutes. I steeped the leaves three times: 3 minutes, 3 minutes 30 seconds, and 4 minutes.
4. Tip the covered cup into the tasting bowl. Drain completely, then flip over the cup to dislodge the leaves onto the lid.
5. Smell the infused leaves, then place the lid upside down on the infusion cup to display them.
6. Smell the liquor.
7. Sip the liquor. You can use a spoon or drink directly from the tasting bowl. I've used a spoon in the past but this time I sipped directly from the bowl. It's definitely encouraged to slurp the tea!
8. Make your notes on smell, taste, color, texture, etc. Also, enjoy the tea!

The infused leaves smelled like green stems with floral and stone fruit notes. The liquor from the first infusion was a deep honey color, amber with a sweet smell which carried through to the taste. Accompanying the sweetness was a pleasant green astringency, a thigh mouthfeel, and a lingering stone fruit taste. With a second infusion, the color of the liquor deepened but it was less sweet and fruity. The green astringency was still there though it had spun off into a dryness on the tongue and fruity film on my top row of teeth. The end note like gnawing on the pit of a stone fruit. The third and final infusion was lighter in color and thinner in flavor and texture. The green astringency was mostly gone but happily the dry fruitiness remained. I cupped this tea twice and am sharing notes from my second session. Out of a 2 ounce bag I have used approximately 6 grams so fortunately for me I have another 50 grams of this Darjeeling or at least 16 more cuppings. The fact that I performed this calculation should tell you that I am looking forward to drinking more of it.

1st Flush Darjeeling Tumsong courtesy of Smith Teamaker.

Learning to Evaluate Shou Puerh, a Review of Teanami Palace Mo Hei

The first time I drank puerh, and I think it was a shou, was when I lived in Berkeley, California, where I purchased a small amount of the tea at a Whole Foods Market. I did not enjoy the tea then nor on any of the subsequent occasions afterward until last week when I conducted a tasting of shou with Dr. Christine TN Wong, an independent consultant and educator. The tea I steeped was a 2007 Ripe Palace Mo Hei courtesy of Teanami. For evaluation purposes I used 3 grams of tea. The leaves were infused in 212F water for 3 minutes then 3.5 minutes.

The dry leaf smelled fungal, musty, and sweet (dried, red fruit). The leaves were pieces from a cake, were variations on brown, and were dry and rough.

The color of the first infusion was a dark red brown but as it poured looked inky. Describing the color was the simplest part of this tasting. Otherwise, the liquor was a cacophony of mouthfeel, taste, and smell. The tea tasted like eating a raw mushroom or wet cardboard or maybe like drinking mushroom juice. There was an underlying molasses sweetness as well as a dryness that I experienced in the roof and cheeks of my mouth. As the liquor cooled, it became thicker and heavier. All the flavor lingered. There wasn't a traditional smoky notes per se but I did detect a leather belt flavor (as in licking a leather belt). When pressed, I described the taste as drinking a lapsang souchong with milk.

The infused tea leaves were small and inconsistently sized. The leaves were all a dark red brown color after steeping and smelled deep, rich, and of mushrooms in a paper bag.

The liquor from the second infusion had the color of a zinfandel. The tea smelled again like mushrooms in a paper bag with a light sweet smell off the steam. The taste was fungal, funky, and of forest soil below the top layer of decomposing leaves. The mouthfeel was heavier than the first infusion but not dramatically so, and the flavors lingered here too. The infused leaves were lighter in color than after the first infusion but still had "legs", staining the gaiwan.

Overall, the aromatic profile of this tea is mushrooms in a paper bag and forest soil. The liquor from the first steep was bolder than the second one. The second infusion yield an integrated, smoother and sweeter tea. I felt heady after drinking this tea. The "webbing" effect that I first felt while drinking the second infusion intensified. I don't think I could drink a long session of shou.

How do you feel when you drink a ripe puerh?

Tisane Profile: Yerba Mate

Yerba mate en el Jardín Botánico de Buenos Aires via Wikimedia Commons

I have mentioned several times here on the blog and on social media that I am taking coursework with the International Tea Education Institute. One of our first homework assignments was to write a profile of yerba mate. Given that the 2016 Olympic Games are being hosted in Brazil, I thought I'd share the profile with you now.

Have you ever drunk yerba mate? I own a bombilla and have tried the tisane at a friend's house though I cannot recall the flavor or smell of the beverage.

Tea Cultivars - 12 Chinese Tea Cultivars

Image: Sencha, two types

This post is an optional homework assignment for a tea education course. During an early class we discussed tea cultivation and the Japanese green tea cultivar 'Yabukita' was the case study. A cultivar is a cultivated variety that must be propagated vegetatively typically through cuttings whereas as a plant variety occurs naturally and is propagated through seeds. Learn more about cultivar versus variety. Yabukita accounts for 85% of green tea production in Japan. It is is one of more than 52 registered cultivars, both green and black, in Japan. Ricardo at My Japanese Green Tea has a list of the Japanese tea cultivars registered between 1953 and 2012.

Image: Dragon Well

I found the discussion of cultivars fascinating so decided to complete the optional assignment. Although the assignment was to chart 12 Chinese green tea cultivars I had been considering researching Taiwanese oolongs because I have been drinking a lot of these teas this year. However, in looking for the possible cultivar used to produce the Alishan oolong offered by Adagio Teas, I came across a list of Taiwanese oolong and black cultivars created by James at TeaDB. You can read my review of the Alishan oolong here.

Image: Silver Needle

Without further ado, here is my chart of 12 Chinese Tea Cultivars with preference given to green teas. I have drunk every tea on this list; most I have reviewed.

	Tea Name	Translated Name	Type of Tea	Cultivar(s)	Region (Province)
1	Longjing	Dragon Well	Green	Longjing #43; Longjing Jiu Keng	Zhejiang
2	Pi Lo Chun/ Bi Luo (or Lu) Chun	Spring Green Snail	Green	-	Jiangsu
3	Lu Shan Yun Wu	-	Green	Longjing #43	Jiangxi, Anhui and Zhejiang
4	Huang Shan Mao Feng	-	Green	Mao Feng	Anhui
5	Bai Hao Yin Zhen	Silver Needle	White	Da Bai (Fuding; Zhen He)	Fujian
6	Bai Mu Dan	White Peony	White	Fuding Da Bai	Fujian
7	Tie Guan Yin	Iron Goddess of Mercy	Oolong	Tieguanyin	Fujian
8	Da Hong Pao	Big Red Robe	Oolong	Beidou No. 1 (is it a cultivar, or a sub-varietal of Shui Xian/ Shui Hsien?)	Fujian (Wuyi Mountains)
9	Jin Jun Mei	Golden Eyebrow	Black (Lapsang Souchong)	Jin Jun Mei (buds only); Fu Yun Liu Hao	Fujian (Wuyi Mountains)
10	Keemun	-	Black	Keemun Mao Feng (fine pluck); Keemun Hao Ya (A, B)	Anhui
11	Bai Lin Congfu	-	Black	Fuding Da Bai; Da Hao	Fujian
12	-	Golden Monkey	Black	Fuding (imperial pluck)	Fujian; Yunnan

Image: Golden Monkey

One of the things that struck me on reviewing the chart was that although the birthplace of tea is Yunnan Province, many of the teas I list here are from Fujian Province. This was accidental; I did not purposefully select teas from Fujian. The authors of Tea: History, Terroirs, Varieties point out that Fujian "is renowned for the variety of teas it produces." Another curious feature is the lack of translated names for all the teas. I did not find a central source for tea cultivar information. Not all tea vendors list cultivar names. Luckily, of the teas presented in the chart, only one is missing a cultivar name, the Bi Luo Chun. It's possible that this tea does not have a cultivar, or that the cultivar used is not officially recorded, or that there is some disagreement about whether the tea is produced from a sub-varietal or a cultivar as in the case of Da Hong Pao. In some cases, such as Longing and Tieguanyin, the tea name and cultivar name are the same.

Image: Huang Shan Mao Feng

Please review the chart. Let me about errors. Help me to fill in the missing information. Thank you!